Gooey-caching

Geocaching HQ Employee Spotlight: Senior Software Developer, Dave (Wilson)

This is part of a series of blog posts shining a spotlight on the people of GeocachingHQ. We hope to show you the “geo-who” behind the “geo-what”. 🙂

What is your name?
Dave, but there are 3 other Dave/Davids at HQ so early on people started referring to me by my last name, Wilson. It took a little getting used to, but now I really enjoy having a name that is unique. And yes, I share my name with a volleyball. 🙂

Yeah, but what’s your Username?
HiddenGnome

A Geocaching HQ "requirement".
A Geocaching HQ “requirement”.

How did you come up with your username?
My wife and I love to garden and we have a growing collection of gnomes around our yard and house. I like to think that gnomes are clever, stealthy and a little bit mischievous (not always in that order). Those traits felt like a good match for me as a geocacher too.

What is your job title? 
Senior Software Developer
Gooey-caching
Gooey-caching
What does your job title actually mean? In other words, how do you explain what you do to someone that has no idea what you do?
I work on the geocaching.com website, keeping the website running and adding new features. There are many steps and people that are required to take an idea and turn it into something on the website, but my primary role is to turn the ideas into something that a computer can understand. One of my favorite responsibilities is helping to layout the structure of new projects so they scale over time, similar to how an engineer might map out a city that is continually growing.

Tell us about your geocaching style (exotic locations / quality over quantity)? 
I am not a powercacher and definitely prefer quality over quantity. I love geocaching when I travel and often use it to find out about areas that are off the beaten path.
Off the beaten path
Off the beaten path
What’s something that surprises you about geocaching – whether it’s the game itself, working at headquarters, or anything else?
There have been a number of geocaches that have completely blown me away. Whether it is a particularly brain bending puzzle, a clever multi or an elaborate night cache; the thoughtfulness and creativity that goes into certain geocaches is what keeps me interested. Also, some people are willing to blindly stick their hand into a dark hole in search of a geocache. I am not one of those people.
Deep thoughts, with Dave
Deep thoughts, with Dave
What’s the best piece of geocaching advice or information you ever learned?
The obvious spot is sometimes exactly where you will find the cache.
Kind to animals. Loved by children. Excels at DNFs.